Lim Keng Liat (born 29 August 1980) is a retired

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...

. He was born in

Sandakan Sandakan (, Jawi: , ) formerly known at various times as Elopura, is the capital of the Sandakan District in Sabah, Malaysia. It is the second largest city in Sabah after Kota Kinabalu. It is located on the Sandakan Peninsula and east coast of ...

Sabah Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indone ...

. He was awarded the National Sportsman of the Year and Olympian of the Year in 1998. In 2009, he was inducted into the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) Hall of Fame.

Career

Lim attended The Bolles School in Jacksonville for his prep tenure and had unparalleled success. In 1998, 1999, and 2000, Lim was the national high school champion in both the 100 butterfly and 100 backstroke, and he twice set the 100 backstroke national record during his time with the Bulldogs. Alex Lim first appeared in

Southeast Asia Games The Southeast Asian Games, also known as the SEA Games, is a biennial multi-sport event involving participants from the current 11 countries of Southeast Asia. The games are under the regulation of the Southeast Asian Games Federation with supe ...

at the age of 15 in 1995. At the

1998 Asian Games The 1998 Asian Games (), officially known as the 13th Asian Games and the XIII Asiad, was an Asian multi-sport event celebrated in Bangkok, Thailand from December 6 to 20, 1998, with 377 events in 36 sports and disciplines participated by 6,554 ...

, he won Malaysia's first swimming gold medal in 100m backstroke as well as breaking the games record. He was the only Malaysian swimmer to date who clinched a swimming medal in

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

. At the

2002 Commonwealth Games The 2002 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XVII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Manchester 2002 were held in Manchester, England, from 25 July to 4 August, 2002. The 2002 Games were to be hosted in the United Kingdom to coin ...

, he won the silver medal in 50m backstroke where his time was just 0.02 seconds behind the former Australian world champion,

Matt Welsh Matthew James Welsh (born 18 November 1976) is an Australian swimmer who is the former world champion in the backstroke and butterfly. He took two golds in 50-meter butterfly and 50-meter backstroke, during one hour, at the World Championship ...

. He also won the bronze medal in 100m backstroke. He qualified for the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

, and

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

. In the

, he became the first and only Malaysian to qualify for the semi-finals in swimming at Olympics. He was also the first and only Malaysian to enter the final in the 100m backstroke at the FINA World Swimming Championships Barcelona, Spain.

Awards

* 1998 Malaysian Sportman of the Year * 1998 Malaysian Olympian of the Year * OCM Hall of Fame

Honour

Honour of Malaysia

* : ** Member of the

Order of the Defender of the Realm The Most Esteemed Order of the Defender of the Realm ( ms, Darjah Yang Mulia Pangkuan Negara) is a Malaysian federal award presented for meritorious service to the country. The Order Motto are 'Dipeliharakan Allah-Pangkuan Negara' (By the Grace o ...

(A.M.N.) (2000)

References

1980 births Living people People from Sandakan Malaysian male swimmers Male backstroke swimmers Olympic swimmers of Malaysia Swimmers at the 1996 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 2000 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 2004 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games silver medallists for Malaysia Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for Malaysia Swimmers at the 1998 Commonwealth Games Swimmers at the 2002 Commonwealth Games Swimmers at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Asian Games medalists in swimming Swimmers at the 1998 Asian Games Swimmers at the 2002 Asian Games Swimmers at the 2006 Asian Games Asian Games gold medalists for Malaysia Asian Games silver medalists for Malaysia Commonwealth Games medallists in swimming Medalists at the 1998 Asian Games Medalists at the 2002 Asian Games Southeast Asian Games medalists in swimming Southeast Asian Games gold medalists for Malaysia Southeast Asian Games silver medalists for Malaysia Members of the Order of the Defender of the Realm Competitors at the 1995 Southeast Asian Games 20th-century Malaysian people 21st-century Malaysian people Medallists at the 2002 Commonwealth Games {{Malaysia-swimming-bio-stub

Career

Awards

Honour

Honour of Malaysia

See also

References